Lily's Beginning: Year One At Hogwarts
by CNJ
Summary: Lily Evans starts her 1st year at Hogwarts, getting away from her spiteful sister & making new friends while having new experiences. Strong language.
1. Beauty And The Freak

Hey, all fellow HP fans, just wanted to take time out to thank everyone who's reviewed my Harry stories; thanks so much! There'll be more coming on my Harry Potter stories soon, but I've also been wanting to go back in time and write something on the remarkable woman who made Harry's life possible and whose heroic, selfless act saved her beloved son's life...here's a story on Lily and how she started at Hogwarts, at least her first year. Will probably add another story on her fourth and maybe her seventh year soon as well! Meanwhile, enjoy this piece and let me know what you think! 

The usual disclaimers: None of the characters, places, spells, and names that HP fans recognize are mine; they belong to JK Rowlings. Also Lily had many similar experiences to her son while she was growing up, so if you see a few similarities in some of the events, esp. to the first book, know that no copyright infringement is intended.   


  


**Lily's Beginning: Year One at Hogwarts**

_By_: CNJ 

_PG-13_

**1: Beauty and the Freak**

**Lily:**

I was named Lily because every year, my mum's great aunt Beatrice planted lovely purple and blue lilies in her window box in her kitchen. Mum often spent holidays with her as a girl and since she was close to her great-aunt, she has very warm memories of the place. But Beatrice has been gone since I was three, so now it's just Mum, Dad, my older sister Petunia and me. 

"Uuuup!" Someone screeched right outside my door that late July two months before my eleventh birthday. "Get up, you little freak...now!" I was jolted out of a slumber by Petunia banging on the door. 

"Yehhh..." I rolled over and ran a hand through my long straight red hair. Mum and Dad most likely sent her to wake me up since today we were headed out for a picnic. Company picnic with Mum's company, I remembered, sliding out of bed, rubbing my eyes. Mum's an architect while Dad's a dentist. 

"What?!" Petunia screeched. _Shut up_, I mentally told her. She's fifteen and is the biggest pain in the arse. 

"I'm coming..." I muttered. Long ago, I learned that the best way to deal with her is to just stay mostly quiet and out of her way. I get dressed, listening to Petunia thunk down the stairs, ran a brush through my thick red hair, then headed down. 

I'd just reached the kitchen when Petunia, who's much taller than me, leaped out from the side closet, smacked my head, shoved me into the closet, then ran into the kitchen herself. _Shit_, I thought, struggling to regain my balance. I had to extricate myself from the pile of bags, a mop and hangers before continuing into the kitchen, rubbing my head. 

"Good morning, Lily dear!" Mum greeted. 

"Hello," Dad added, putting more bacon on his plate. 

"Mor'ing..." I mumbled, still feeling a bit sleepy. Petunia snickered at me before wolfing down the rest of her pancakes. 

"How many pancakes, dear?" Mum asked from the griddle. 

"Three..." I told her, bringing my plate over. Petunia muttered some insolent remarks about me being Mummy's girl. I ignored her and sat, pouring myself some orange juice. 

Mum and Dad tell me that Petunia's jealous of me because I have special abilities that are extremely rare in this world. I guess I do have great abilities in some areas, mainly musical talent. I love to play the violin in my spare time and was in the band at my primary school. 

But there are other things that none of us have been able to explain...it'll sound bizarre, but I sometimes lift things by just looking at them. I also remember a time when Petunia sneaked into my room at night and cut my hair off, but the next day it grew back to the shoulder-length it had been. Mum and Dad had been astonished, then relieved while Petunia had nearly been sick as a pig with disgust. It was around that time that she starting referring to me as a freak. 

I'm so glad she's not in the same school with me now; she's starting her fifth year of secondary school in September while I'll be starting a different secondary school. Mum, Dad, and I have talked about the possibility of me going to Crestmeade School, which specializes in the arts. 

I'd love to try it since at my primary school, some kids saw me as an oddball and often made fun of me. Last year especially was bad and this one boy taunted me as a freak just like Petunia. No doubt Petunia has told some of her friends what a weird little thing I am. 

They used to come around and Petunia would play some nasty prank on me and her friends would laugh. I'd try to pretend it didn't bother me, but it always hurt and sometimes I'd end up in tears. If Mum was upstairs or something, I'd cry in her arms and she'd stroke me, telling me to try not to let Petunia get to me. It's easier said than done. 

Now since early last year, Petunia has been seeing a Vernon Dursley, who's two years older than her. Her other friends haven't been around as much ever since. I guess I should be relieved, but the truth is, Vernon isn't much better. I've heard them snickering about me once or twice and Vernon sometimes looks at me with a curled lip. So I stay out of their way. 

"So, Mum, can Vernon come on this trip?" Petunia asked, running a comb through her light-brown hair. 

"I'm afraid not, dear," Mum told her. "It's just family." 

"But Vernon's almost like family," Petunia insisted. "And you let Lily bring her weird friend with us on that little culture shenanigan." 

"That was a school affair," Dad told her. "This is different." 

"It's aaaaalwaaaays _different_ with the little freak!" Petunia screeched, glaring at me. I silently finished my buttered toast and methodically licked my fingers, hoping that Petunia wouldn't find some way to rope Mum and Dad into letting Vernon join us. Just the thought of it made my breakfast lurch in my stomach. 

"Petunia!" Mum told her firmly. 

"I know, I know, _don't call your sister naaames_," Petunia mimicked, getting up noisily and throwing her plate into the sink. 

"She spoils everything, yet you always stick up for her." 

"That's enough," Mum told her firmly. "We have half an hour to get ready." Letting out my breath in relief, I headed upstairs to brush my teeth and finish getting ready. 

Combing out my bangs, I looked at the face in the mirror. A strange face, some would say. Large greenish-hazel eyes framed by thick brows, a wide rather flat snub nose and plump full lips. Still very short, only about four-seven. 

Mum says soon I'll be going through a growth spurt, within the next few years. I ran the comb through my straight, rather messy red hair, debated on putting it into a ponytail, but decided to leave it loose and headed downstairs. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

The day had started out cloudy, but had cleared by the time we got to the park near Picadilly Circus. Most of Mum's co-workers were there and Mum introduced Petunia, Dad, and me to them. 

What a swell day, I thought, looking around. The recent hot spell had broken and it was a pleasant warm, but not hot or humid. 

We grabbed some food, then a while later, I saw a frisbee game going and asked my parents if I could join. They nodded, so I went. Some of them were kids a year or two older than me while the rest were adults. I slid into the game quietly and even caught the frisbee a few times. 

"Aaaand she catches it again!" a teenage girl bellowed when I caught it twice in a row. Around me, players applauded. I blushed some and tossed the frisbee to the girl, who caught it and tossed it on. 

"Hi, I'm Alice Forrester..." she grinned at me. "You are...?" 

"Lily Evans..." I smiled back at her. "Pleasure meeting you." 

"Me too," Alice told me. "Your parents work for Builders and Etcetera?" 

"Mum does...she's an architect, so my family's here for the picnic." 

"My dad's a builder for them," Alice told me. "Aaaand here it comes, here it comes!" The frisbee was sailing toward us. We ran toward it and I had it nearly in my outstretched hand when I tripped over something and wound up flat on my arse. Not to mention in a muddy patch too. I heard laughter and saw none other than Petunia behind me. The frisbee was way down the field. 

"Looks like you never looked out, did you, freak?" Petunia jeered and went into another roar of laughter. It's hard to say how it happened next, but as I glowered at her, she'd vanished from above me and I heard her yowl and looked around as I stood up. 

People began to laugh and point in the direction of the comedians and artists. I followed their gazes and saw Petunia right in the middle of the horse corral with a horses' costume over her body while her face was painted to look like a donkey. I had to stifle a smile myself. Petunia ran out of the corral, screeching and pulling off the costume. 

"That little freak!" she screamed, running toward Mum and Dad, who'd sat up and looked puzzled. Petunia kicked off the last of the costume and threw it across the field, nearly smacking a couple under a tree. "She did it!!!" Petunia carried on like this for I don't know how long while Mum and Dad tried to calm her down. 

"I didn't do anything," I told them, coming up to them. "I...she tripped me and I fell and the next thing...she was in the corral with the paint and costume. I don't know how it happened." 

"Oh, stop with the innocent act, you little witch!" Petunia screamed. 

"Petunia, calm yourself," Mum told her firmly. "I'm sure it was an accident. Let's get you cleaned off...there's a washroom over there..." 

"And I'm not spending another minute with that weirdo! Petunia snapped, storming off. "I knew coming here was a mistake!" A lot of people were looking at us by then and I felt my face redden in embarrassment. 

"I really didn't know..." 

"It's all right, dear," Dad told me, stroking my arm. I sat shakily and Mum offered me a can of grape juice, which I took. The frisbee game went on and Petunia didn't come back. I saw her in the distance stalk over to the car and sit in it, probably pouting. Good, she wasn't rejoining us. Mostly, it's just easier if she's not with us. She acts like a spoiled jackass too often. 

On the way home, Petunia kept sulking while my parents and I talked around here. Once in a while she'd make a _t _sound and heave a gusty, I guess hoping to ruin the rest of our day. But we just ignored her. I couldn't wait until September when school started again. 

More later! 


	2. Surprise Invitation

**Lily's Beginning: Year One At Hogwarts**

_By_: CNJ 

_PG-13_

**2: Surprise Invitation**

**Lily:**

I was surprised to see the mail come early that last Saturday in July. It wasn't a lot, just something for Mum and an ad. I picked it up and was surprised to see one addressed to me. I left the rest of the mail on Mum and Dad's desk and peered at my own as I headed back to my room. 

As I entered, I was very surprised to see a snowy owl fly past my window. What the...? _Owls are nocturnal creatures_, I thought. Shaking my head at my overactive imagination, I sat on my bed looking at the envelope again. 

_Miss_._ Lily Evans_, it was addressed and had our address on it. Looking at the back, I saw _Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry _in London, England. With shaky fingers, I opened it and out fell two sheets of paper...parchment actually with thick ink writing on it. The first read, 

_Dear Miss_._ Evans,___

_ We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Enclosed is a list of necessary books and supplies_. _ We await your reply by July 31 via owl_.__

_Sincerely, Headmaster Morocco Vester and Deputy Headmistress Vivian Pierce_   
  
  


My hands shaking, I looked at the second sheet and found a list for school supplies like none other that I'd ever seen. It had titles of several books, but at the same time, it also had things like a cauldron, an animal like an owl, bat or toad, a wand, and a few other odd things. Of all odd things...maybe this explained a lot, like what happened at the picnic and everything. 

I re-read the letter several times. That probably explained the owl outside my window, the via owl part. But how did you reply to a letter...oh, the owl carried the letter. 

"What that, little freak?" someone asked and I looked up to see Petunia entering. Her eyes widened then. "My, my, my, is that what I think it is?" 

"It's mine," I told her shakily, holding it close to me so she couldn't see it. But she leaped forward and snatched the letter from my hand and read through it. 

"A freeeak school, ehhh?!" she screeched. "I always knew you were a nut, Lily Evans, but this puts the cake on it! You are a certified first-class weird freeeeeak!" 

"Give it back, it's my letter!" I yelled, trying to snatch it from her, but she held it over my head. 

"Maybe Mum and Dad will see they've gone too far in indulging you and put a stop to this once and for all!" 

"I said, give it back!" Mum and Dad came running upstairs just then. 

"What's going on?" Dad asked. 

"She has my letter," I had to wipe tears from my eyes. 

"A letter from a freak house, that's what!" Petunia held it up. 

"Hogwarts..." Mum mumbled. "Well, that's one of the best schools in this country for magical people! Oh, Lily, you've been accepted?" I nodded. "Congratulations, dearie!" Mum ran over and gave me a hug and Dad joined in with a smile. 

"I caaaaan't believe this!" Petunia screamed. With that, she tore the letter in half. 

"No..." I cried as she made a move to tear it again. Mum then snatched it away from her and ordered her to her room. With one last scowl at me, Petunia went. I wiped a tear from my face as I looked at the letter, now ripped in half. 

"Not to worry, we can tape it up," Dad soothed. 

"D-did you know I was...?" I started. 

"Magical?" Mum finished. "We suspected as much a few months ago. We'd heard of witches and wizards and magical schools for them." 

"Do you want to try Hogwarts this coming year?" Dad asked as we sat on the bed. 

"I'd love to," I nodded. "But how will we let them know? We don't have an owl." Mum and Dad glanced at each other. 

"We can send them a conventional reply and let them know," Mum told me. "They'll tell us where to shop for your supplies and where to go then. Oh, Lily, we're so proud of you!" I had the feeling I'd fit in well at Hogwarts and get a chance to meet others like me...other witches and wizards and magical people who sometimes made strange things happen. 

More later! 


	3. New Friends, New Experiences

**_Quick author's note_**: For creative purposes, I make the entry into the Hogwarts Express Station a bit different in Lily's youth; in my story, the walking through the wall system and platform 9 and three quarters isn't activated until shortly after Lily and James die, just so you don't think it's an error. Enjoy! 

**Lily's Beginning: Year One At Hogwarts**

_By_: CNJ 

_PG-13_

**3: New Friends, New Experiences**

**Lily:**

We had another hot weekend the third weekend in August. I headed outside to see if maybe I should have a dip in the lake. That's when I saw a girl, a black-haired one crouched under a log. 

Her hair was long, straight and rather messy like mine. She was peering out and whispering to a dark brown cat next to her. I'd never seen her before, so I slowly walked up. She saw me than and called, "Hello..." 

"Hello..." I sat on the log and watched her write some kind of writing into the ground, then whisper more to her cat. "Does the cat understand you?" The girl nodded, then crawled out from under the log. 

I was surprised to see a parchment sticking out of her pocket and the envelope for it fell out and it had Hogwarts in its letter head. "I got something like that a month ago!" I gasped. So she was a witch too. 

"So you're magical too?" she asked. "I'm Amelia Kovacs, by the way." 

"I'm Lily Evans," I introduced myself. "Pleasure meeting you. I guess it'll be my first year at Hogwarts." 

"Mine too," Amelia smiled and I smiled back. "I was eleven back in March. All area witches and wizard get this in their eleventh year. My mum and dad went to Hogwarts as well." 

"So they're magical too?" 

"Yes. We're going shopping for my supplies tomorrow." 

"Me too...my mum and dad aren't magical, though...neither is my sister." 

"Muggles." Amelia told me. 

"What?" 

"That's what non-magic folks are called. Some Hogwarts students; their whole families are magical; others came strictly from muggle families while others are a mix of muggle and magic." I nodded, grateful for this bit of information. Amelia told me that her own family was a mixture as well. 

"What else can you tell me about Hogwarts?" I asked. 

"It's a middle and secondary school rolled up in one. First years start off at usually eleven like us, then go all the way until their last year of secondary school at seventeen or eighteen, then graduate," Amelia told me as we walked up toward our houses. She brushed a lock of her thick black bangs out of her eyes and beckoned her cat, who followed. "This is Ebonshires, by the way. Ebby for short." 

"Hi, Ebby..." I waved. 

"As for supply shopping, we enter a place called Diagon Alley where they sell everything we need. It's in the middle of London and we enter through a back wall of a sort of bar called the Leaky Cauldron. 

She told me a lot of other little helpful facts, such as on September first, students catch a train called the Hogwarts Express and the station was entered by tapping a wand on a back wall of a loo at the Kings' Crossing Station. 

"Hey, maybe you could come over for a while and tell some of this to my mum and dad, so they know what to do," I suggested. She liked the idea, so she came over. Thank the stars, Petunia was out somewhere with Vernon, so I didn't have to worry about her. 

"Why don't our families shop together?" Mum suggested over a snack. "Maybe your parents would like that?" 

"I'm sure they will..." Amelia finished up a cookie. "Do you have a...?" She looked around. "...contacter?" She then looked over at our phone by the wall. "I guess I could come over or ring you." I gave her my phone number. 

"Some magical people don't use telephones," she explained. "Most of us use contacters. It's a tiny device you touch to summon someone." 

"I see." I knew there would be a lot to learn about magical machines and appliances since I had the feeling that they are quite different from ordinary...muggle ones. "See you soon." We waved as we parted. 

"She seems like a nice girl," Mum commented as I came back in and helped her clear the snack dishes. 

"Yes. It's so lucky I found her; she'll be able to give us a lot of pointers in the magical world." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"...Two...one...here it is!" Amelia's mum pointed. "Leaky Cauldron!" My parents, Amelia, her younger sister, Tara, and parents, and I entered what appeared to be a bar or pub resembling that of the Charles Dickens era. It was dimly lit, smoky-looking, and people sat in bars, many of them in long robes and strange hats. 

We proceeded to the back where Amelia's mum pulled out a wand and tapped it on certain bricks. I tried to count each section where she tapped it, but it was hard. I gasped as the walls parted; the bricks shifted to form an archway into another street, another world altogether. 

We entered and it was an amazing street with a narrow winding cobblestone road and hundreds, maybe thousands of little shops. The place was crowded with mostly witches and wizards shopping, eating, socializing. Mum and Dad gaped around just as I did. _Ohhh_, Mum gasped. 

"What a delightful quaint place..." Dad murmured. It was. 

"The first stop we want to make is Gringotts' Bank," Amelia's dad told us. "You'll need your muggle money converted to galleons." I had a cash reserved with me, so we headed there. The bank was very strange. Instead of human clerks and tellers, it was these tiny things... 

"Amelia...what are these things?" I whispered. They had huge heads and scowling little faces with pointed ears. 

"Goblins," Amelia told me. "Not really friendly...but efficient." And they were. At the Kovacs' advice, I opened up an account with Gringotts and one of the Goblins took us to a big vault by this thing that appeared to be a cross between a sled and a cart. It zipped along these narrow tracks and I had to fight to keep my stomach calm. The whole place was rather dim and cavelike, almost eerie. 

"Stand baack, pleeease," the goblin barked in a high bleat as it opened the vault. With shaky hands, I put a chunk of my newly converted galleons in it. 

"It's...it's secure here?" I asked nervously. 

"One of the safest places to keep your money reserves," the goblin bleated, then jumped back into the cart. We joined it and the cart zoomed us back to the entrance. 

I let out my breath in relief to be back outdoors. Then we hit the stores. A lot of it was picking up books and our cauldrons and wands. 

"Bewaaare of letting this wand fall into the wrong hands," the wand shop owner, Mr. Ollivander told me once I was matched with the right wand. 

"Wh-what do you mean?" I asked shakily. 

"Not aaall witches and wizards are gooood..." he intoned. "Some go bad and take wands to use for the wrong purposes. Should your wand get lost or stolen, contact me immediately and I'll deactivate it and send you a new wand. Take caaare and gooood luuuck at Hogwarts." He smiled then, his gold tooth shining in the dusty shop. 

"Thank you, Mr. Ollivander." I peered at my new wand as I rejoined the others. Our robes came near the end and there was quite a line of Hogwarts hopefuls waiting to be fitted. Amelia and I managed to find a small spot near the door and talked awhile. I caught snatches of other conversations as well. 

"...almost all the ones who went bad were in Slytherin..." 

"...that Tom Riddle bloke was in Slytherin...I hear he's calling himself Voldemort now and has gone bad..."   
"I heard...he's even trying to recruit followers to do his bidding..." 

"...Mum was in Gryffindor, so I hope I get so lucky; she says the kids there were great..." From listening to their conversation, we heard that Hogwarts had four basic houses...Slytherin, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Gryffindor and that on the night new students arrived, they were divided into each house. 

"How are students sorted?" Amelia asked a boy in front of us. The boy had light brown hair and gray eyes. 

"Don't know." He shrugged and I guessed that he was a first year like us. 

"I heard you have to recite a spell..." someone called. 

"No, I heard you have to change a rat into a goblet!" someone else put in. Others chimed in with guesses, some of them funny, others daft. God, I hoped there wasn't one where you had to wand-battle a giant! 

"Number forty-four...Remus Lupin!" the witch up front called and the boy in front of us went up. 

"Good luck..." he called. 

"You too..." we called after him. Finally our numbers were called and we left the store a half hour later with new robes. 

"God, I think it'll be neat wearing these robes," Amelia told me as we headed down toward the small cafe where our parents were meeting us. 

"Me too," I nodded. "They look so dignified." 

"We're ready then," Amelia nodded. 

"Hope so." We had all our supplies, at least the material ones, so we headed back toward the muggle world. Now if we could be sure we were mentally and emotionally ready, that would be a feat. 

More later! 


	4. A New School Year Begins!

**Lily's Beginning: Year One at Hogwarts**

_By_: CNJ 

_PG-13_

**4: A New School Year Begins!**

**Lily:**

"It's around here somewhere..." I muttered as Amelia and I wandered with our parents around the Kings' Crossing station on September first. If we could just find that loo, the Leaky Loo as I heard it called, we'd be in good shape. All around us, trains took off, muggle trains. After about twenty minutes of not seeing any loos, I called over to a bobby in uniform rushing by. 

"Excuse me..." 

"Yes, miss?" He slowed and peered at me. 

"Can you tell us where the Leaky Loo is?" I braved my question. 

"Lots of leaky loos around her with the atrocious plumbing in this station," He shrugged and continued on. 

"...whole muggle universe converged here at this time..." We heard someone say. 

"There..." Mum waved us over and we followed a short, rather stout woman with four girls. One appeared to be our age. It was challenging dodging the crowds, but we managed to keep them in sight until they'd reached a small doorway at the end of the station. _The loo_, I thought. Yes, they entered the loo, the mum chattering away about the new school year and Hogwarts and all. The loo was empty, small and rather narrow. 

"Hello..." the woman greeted us and we said hello back. 

"I'm Myra Vinn and these are my four daughters...Wynona, Greta, Zara, and Arabella." She put a hand on each girl's head as she spoke. Mum then introduced us and told her, "Pleasure to meet you." 

"This is Zara's first time too, so Lily and Amelia, you two can just follow..." Myra pulled out her wand and tapped on the bricks. "Three left, two down and one right..." Sure enough, the walls parted and we walked down a long tunnel and emerged to another train station. 

The ceiling were higher than King's Crossing and there were hordes of muggles and magicals milling around, parents kissing their young goodbye, giving last-minute admonitions to do their homework, write home, get enough sleep and nutrition, etc. 

In the midst of all this, on the tracks, was a large, long red and black train with a whistle. It resembled and older train, but was new-looking. On the front it said _Hogwarts Express_ in black lettering. 

"We made it," Myra announced with a grin. 

"So...good luck, dear," Dad told me, giving me a hug. Mum came over and hugged me from the other side. Amelia's parents did the same. Myra gave her three older daughters a hug and the youngest one also hugged her sisters goodbye. I guessed her to be about nine. 

"Write and all..." Myra called as the three of us got ready to board. 

"Byyye..." we called. "We will..." As we boarded, my new owl, Lemon squawked in delight. 

"Yes, Lem, we're taking off," I told my bright yellow owl as we entered the train and looked around for seats. It'll be easy to keep in touch with Mum and Dad with Lemon. 

Inside the train was very modern-looking, similar to the tube in London, but even cleaner and the seats wider and more comfortable. We found a compartment and sat. Ebby squirmed nervously and huddled close to Amelia, her green eyes wide and scared looking at all the kids milling around. Amelia soothed her softly and stroked her dark brown fur. 

"She gets nervous around crowds," Amelia told us. 

"So does my owl, Bernie," Zara told us. She joined us while her older sisters wandered off with a chunk of older kids. Zara dug around in her pockets until she pulled out a gray, rather shaggy little owl. 

"Timid little thing, suspect he was really meant to be a mouse," she told us. 

"Hello, Bernie..." We said softly. Bernie was trembling a little and peered over at us with huge yellow wary eyes. Just then the train took off. It started slowly, then picked up speed, like an airplane taking off. 

Good thing the compartments were separate since out in the corridor, a lot of kids were still horsing around. We talked about various things, but mostly our conversation centered around Hogwarts and what we were expecting. 

"My sisters tell me different things, but I think it's some kind of hat ritual," Zara told us. She had shoulder-length dark brown wavy rather layered hair and large brown eyes. 

"Say a spell and convert the hat to something?" Amelia's eyebrows went up. 

"I'm not sure..." Zara shrugged. "But I know it isn't wrestling a giant or anything like that." Amelia and I let out our breaths in relief. "Wynona's the oldest; she's in her fifth year and Greta's in her third year. Arabella has two more years to go before she joins us; she's nine." 

So I'd guessed Arabella's age. I'm good at telling how old people are, especially kids. Zara told us she'd heard of a spell and would try it to change her owl to orange. 

"I'm not really sure how it'll turn out since underage witches and wizard aren't supposed to use magic in the muggle world...but here goes...Orange roses, clear dew..." she paused briefly. "Roses suck the dew..." 

"Anything of the trolley, dearies?" a high voice interrupted and we looked up to see a short, fat witch with a trolley of scrumptious-looking sweets. Just seeing it made my mouth water, so we pulled out a few galleons. 

"We'll take that lot," I told her and the next minute we were digging into chocolate frogs, sugar quills, licorice scrolls and all kind of goodies. 

"Yuuuck..." Zara muttered. "This bean tastes like grass..." 

"I guess they mean every flavor," Amelia laughed as she looked over the box of Bott's Every Flavor Beans. "They have grass-flavored and even...gross, vomit-flavored ones." 

"Ohhh, God..." We all snickered and made faces. I looked them over carefully before picking out a safe-looking yellow one. Good so far, lemon-flavor. 

"Wouldn't it be wicked to give the gross-flavored ones to muggles as a joke?" Zara grinned. That would be a joke. Hey, I wonder what Petunia's reaction to that would be. Petunia had mostly stayed away and left me alone the last part of summer, thank goodness. Once we'd slowed down on the sweets, we sat back, feeling full. 

"Want to try that spell again, Zara?" I asked. I belched then and the others chuckled. "My stomach...settling down." I grinned and rubbed it. 

"Take two...Orange roses, clear dew...roses suck up the dew, so turn this owl orange like the roses," Zara chanted. Bernie jumped a little under Zara's wand and he drooled a little chocolate out of his mouth, but he stayed gray. "Oh, well..." Zara shrugged. "An unverified spell." 

It was growing dark, so we pulled out our robes and changed into them, knowing we were almost there. The outskirts of London grew sparser and more mountains appeared. 

"It looks like an old-fashioned castle...the school, " Zara told us. As the train got closer, some kids got louder and there was even a soft thud outside our door. 

"Hey, James, knock it off..." someone said. I had the feeling kids were getting restless and antsy. I was feeling excited myself; it was excitement tinged with nervousness. We pulled into an outdoor station, then slowed to a stop. 

"We're here..." Amelia whispered and we all held hands and squeezed. 

"Aaaall riiight, all out!" a voice boomed. We slowly got off onto the platform. "Leave your bags, pets, and things in the cars; they will be picked up and taken to your dorms!" Standing on the platform was what appeared to be a person on a horses' body. 

"Whoaaa..." some kids muttered. 

"It's a Centauri..." Zara told us as we first-years bunched together. The Centauri waved us over, smiling. 

"First years over here...onto the boats..." he led us first years to a huge lake and we gathered in fours onto boats. The Centauri introduced himself as Xyron and identified himself as the Gamekeeper/Groundskeeper of Hogwarts. Xyron lay sideways in a boat and rowed with his short muscular arms. 

Amelia, Zara, and I were fortunate enough to get a boat together. Our fourth occupant was the boy we'd seen in the robe shop, Remus...Lupin, if I remembered correctly. 

As Xyron rowed, our boats automatically followed suit across the lake. Kids talked until a huge dark shape loomed up in the night and we gasped to see a huge castle. 

"Wicked..." Zara murmured. 

"Neat..." "God..." "What a place..." were some of the other comments. The castle was indeed enormous and perched on the edge of a hill. Bit by bit, the boats beached. One group leaped out and landed in the grass with laughter and a huge clatter as someone dropped a little box. 

"Oh, God, my rat's run off again..." Someone moaned as we mounted the incline up toward the castle. Who'd have thought I'd be attending classes in an old castle and a magical one at that for middle and secondary school? I thought with a grin as Xyron knocked on the door. A tall woman with short salt-and-pepper hair opened the huge double doors. 

"The first years, Professor Pierce..." Xyron introduced us. 

"Welcome, come in..." Professor Pierce led us in, Xyron following. She led us into what appears to be a foyer and told us, "Wait here, students...the sorting ceremony and start of the year feast will begin in one moment." She and Xyron vanished into through a door. Whispers rustled among us, some fearful, some eager as to what we'd expect next. 

"So do we hafta fight a giant?" A tall skinny boy with dirty blond hair asked loudly. He spat through his teeth as he talked. 

"No, we have to eat frogs," another boy with longish greasy black hair said sarcastically. 

"Ohhh, shut it, Pettigrew and Snape," a girl near the back said. "We won't know until we get in there." Soft debates rippled through us until Professor Pierce came out and waved us into a huge hallway. 

"The Great Hall..." someone whispered. The hall was huge and floating candles lit the four long tables. The older students sat on their tables. I guessed each table represented each house. 

Once we gathered around the teachers' table, Professor Pierce told us that we'd be called one by one to try on the sorting hat and the hat would decide what house we'd be in. The hat sat on a stool, looking like it had been through a lifetime of trials and triumphs with its frayed black material and dust, but it burst spontaneously into a song describing each house and the Hogwarts school and all. 

Slytherins were known to be cunning and stealth planners; Ravenclaws were known for logic; Hufflepuff students were known as loyal while the Gryffindors were known for courage and integrity. 

God, I hoped I'd be in Gryffindor. I looked at my friends nervously and their wide eyes mirrored my own nervousness. 

"Aberdine, Amy!" Professor Pierce began with the names. My heart thunked wildly in my chest and when my name was called, I swallowed suddenly then went up on shaky legs to the stool and hoped I wouldn't do anything embarrassing like faint. The hat slid over my head, obscuring my vision. 

I jumped at the voice from the hat. _Ohhh, now here's a good mind_, _a good planner_...the hat mused. _Not Slytherin!_ I mouthed, feeling my brows tighten in worry. 

I'd looked over the Slytherins and to me, they seemed cliquish and seemed to have a one-upmanship attitude that I didn't like. The Gryffindors looked more open and seemed to welcome just about everyone. The Hufflepuffs seemed pleasant enough; they seemed to have their groups but weren't too cliquish about it. The Ravenclaws appeared to be open and non-grouped like the Gryffindors, but unlike the Gryffindors mostly seemed to be analyzing each other. 

_Just anything but Slytherin_, I thought. _Not Slytherin, no?_ the hat asked. _No,_ I pleaded in a mouthing, hoping no one could hear me. _Better be then...the_ hat paused briefly. 

"Gryffindor!" the hat finally decided in a bellow and I let out my breath in a whoosh of relief as Professor Pierce lifted the hat off me and I walked shakily over the the Gryffindor table. 

The other Gryffindors grinned and welcomed me along with the other first year to their table. I then crossed my fingers that my two friends would be selected for Gryffindor also. 

Luck was with us because they were. Once the sorting ceremony was over, the three of us leaned over and hugged. 

"Ohhh, isn't this great, we're all going to be together in one dorm!" Amelia squealed. 

"Congrats, little sister!" Zara's two older sisters leaned over from the older kids' side and gave her a little hug. I relaxed. 

The headmaster, Professor Morocco Vester stood to welcome us. He was a somewhat heavyset man with white hair and added a warning to avoid the first floor. As he told us this, he waved toward a skinny, rather bedraggled man holding a scrawny, scruffy-looking cat. "Mr. Filch and Mrs. Norris wanted to emphasize this admonition; there are many dangers there...and now, let the feast begin." With that, he sat and food appeared on all the tables. 

"Woaah..." several of us gasped because it wasn't just ordinary food; it was swell food like roast beef, a huge plate of chicken legs and what seemed to be five million other delicious delectables. We dug in and as we ate, white forms gushed through the table and sent what felt like a cool wind. 

"Hello, Nearly Headless Nick!" called some of the older girls. 

"Hello..." the ghost who appeared to be from the sixteenth century responded. "Welcome to Gryffindor." 

"Nearly headless?" Zara asked, puzzled. 

"Ooops, always one first-year asks and he gives a demonstration..." Wynona groaned and looked away from Nick. The next second I saw why. Nearly Headless Nick pulled his head to one side, showing us where his neck had been severed, held only by a shred of flesh. Ohhh, gross. 

"Yuuuck..." Amelia muttered. I made a face and Zara turned away and pretended to gag. Nearly Headless Nick laughed and putting his head back on, whooshed off to the ceiling. Other ghosts laughed, moaned and waved at us. 

The feast was incredibly delightful and even though my friends and I had hogged out on the Hogwarts Express, we found even more room for this feast and by the time dinner was over, I was feeling sleepy. We finally got up to head upstairs. 

"First year Gryffindors on this side, follow me..." a tall boy called. We did and walked down a long hallway, the boy, a prefect, as his position is, told us various sites and explained the rules of the dorms. He introduced himself as Robert Myer and told us he was a sixth-year. 

The other prefect was Gretchen White and the other first-year Gryffindors would catch up to us upstairs. Robert led us up long narrow staircases. We felt a jolted and the staircase we were on actually shifted to point in the opposite direction! 

"Whooo..." Zara gasped. 

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you...the staircases like to shift and move around," Robert grinned. We nodded nervously and hurried up after Robert to our dorm. All around us were moving pictures of people, mostly long-ago people. 

"Password?" A moving portrait of a fat lady asked. 

"Discus tops," Robert told her. The portrait opened like a door and we entered a very cozy-looking room with a fireplace and gold and red rug. "This is the common room," Robert explained. 

By then, the other first years had arrived and Robert went on to explain about the dorm bedrooms. "The girls' dormitory is up the stairs on the right; the boys' is up the stairs on the left...all of your things are already there." 

I smiled softly and had the feeling that I was going to like these dorms. The Common Room was especially pleasant and I knew at that minute that I'd spend a lot of time reading and doing my homework here. As we went up to our rooms and unpacked, identifying what was ours, an excited chatter washed over the girls in the dorm. 

"God, this place is wicked..." "Am I going to have a great time here..." "These beds are swell..." were some of the comments that flew around as we finished unpacking and got ready for bed. My friends and I grabbed beds together and Zara laughed as her bag fell open and cluttered her floor around her bed. 

"Thank Merlin for these curtains!" she indicated the red curtains that surrounded our beds. "Then my usual mess'll stay contained! Neatness isn't my specialty." We grinned and looked around. 

I sat on my own bed and organized my things and put my things in drawers, put a few family photos up on the dresser and my school things in the night table. I'm a generally neat person. 

I was the last one to go to bed that night. A million thoughts were racing through my head as I thought over the changes my life had gone through in the last month. I wandered over and sat by the window with Lemon. Lemon would peer at me thoughtfully from time to time and I stroked her and occasionally shared a treat with her that I still had from the feast. 

I wondered what further changes and experiences awaited me. In another week, I'd be eleven. Eleven sounded so much older than ten. It was nearly midnight by the time I finally felt sleepy enough to turn in. Tomorrow was the first day of classes and I wanted to be awake and alert for my first full day at Hogwarts.   


Next chapter classes will begin! 


	5. First Day

**Lily's Beginning: Year One At Hogwarts**

_By_: CNJ 

_PG-13_

**5: First Day**

**Lily:**

"Almost zero hour," Zara announced dramatically as we gathered our books and supplies for our first day of classes. Amelia combed her bangs one last time and I looked around to make sure I hadn't forgotten anything. I hadn't. 

It's a good thing the three of us found each other before school started. Now if any of us got lost or did something foolish, we'd all look stupid together as a group, which would be much better than being alone and doing something idiotic and looking ridiculous alone. 

"Ready?" I asked. My friends nodded and we headed down to the Great Hall for breakfast. We were actually early, so we were among the first to arrive. My stomach was quivering and I wasn't sure if I'd be able to eat a thing. 

Breakfast was magicked onto the table once more students arrived. Professors Vector and Pierce had the usual first-day-of-school announcements, then most of us dug in. 

I mostly ate a toast with butter on it and some orange juice and tea. Amelia also ate lightly while Zara ate more. 

The prefects came around and handed out our schedules. Most of the first years had classes together, thank Merlin. In some of the classes, two houses shared the same class. 

"Ohhh, shit, we have a three classes with the Slytherins," I heard someone groan diagonally from us. It was a tall boy with rather longish black hair and large blue eyes. 

"I have the feeling that bunch is going to show up right where we don't want them, especially that greasehead, what's his name, Devesk Snake or something?" Another boy added. He had black hair too, but it was shorter, neater, parted on one side, and rather wavy. I vaguely recalled that his name was James. 

"Severus Snape," a girl supplied from the other side. 

"Hey, I remember from last night," Amelia told us. "The one who made that sarcastic remark about eating frogs." The three of us peered over and sure enough, Severus was among the Slytherins. 

His hair did look greasy, but maybe he was going through early puberty or something. I know oil glands start acting up in puberty big time. I turned to my own food then and managed to force down my orange juice. 

"You three have Potions first thing, right?" Another girl asked us. We nodded. 

"Good, maybe we can head down there together," the girl smiled. "I'm Ravera McLelland, by the way." 

"Lily Evans..." "Amelia Kovacs..." "Zara Vinn..." We introduced ourselves. It was just about time for class, so we headed there. The Potions room was near the front of the school and it was a long, long narrow hallway. 

The room was huge and sunny in places, dark in others. The door to what I took to be the office swung open and a tall woman with greenish-black hair strode in and plopped her books and notes onto her desk. 

"Good morning, class; I'm your Potions professor; I'm Professor Laris; this year, we will be learning about wormwood..." she rattled off a whole list of things, most of which I'd never heard of. 

One glance around the room told me that most of my classmates were just as bewildered. As she spoke in her rapid wandfire voice, she spun around and began writing notes on the board. 

Just to be on the safe side, I copied them and so did several others. Laris was like a windup doll, rattling away of things we'd be expected to learn this year. 

"Aaaand so, that is a beginning of what we'll be covering this year." Finally, she paused for breath. A note was pitched onto my desk. _I wondered how long it'll be before she needed to breathe_, Amelia had penned. I grinned at her and Zara mock-panted. 

"So, for your first assignment tonight..." she began again. Someone in the back groaned and another person giggled. Professor Laris ignored it and went on to tell us to read chapters one and two and take the short quiz at the end of those two chapters. 

"Not baaad, not baaaad..." Zara mused as we headed to our next class, Defense Against the Dark Arts. The room for that class was near the back in the dungeon area. It was also another class with the Slytherins. 

"The Slytherin dorms are close by there, in face almost down the hall from this room," Zara told us as we entered the rather damp, darkish room. The teacher was a rather cool, logical man with slicked-back light brown hair and pale blue eyes. He was Professor Norris. He started the class by taking attendance, then looked up and down the aisles. 

"All right, class, let's go over some basic rules here...punctuality is expected at all times, the only exception being an extreme emergency. And I do mean extreme, like your own death or something." His pale blue eyes looked around piercingly. 

"Secondly, if I catch anyone passing notes, I will possibly read it out loud, so avoid that embarrassment and don't take a chance...third, if I see anyone not paying attention, it will be ten points off your house; three times in a semester of inattentiveness and it will be twenty points and a detention. Am I making myself clear?" he demanded. 

"Yes..." we all nodded. 

"Yes..." He cocked his head. "I can hardly hear you...yes and...?" 

"Yes, Professor Norris..." We chorused. We sounded like computers responding to a spoken command. 

"That's better..." He went on about other rules. 

As he was finishing, the door creaked and three late students tried to sneak their way in. "Like I said before when I was going over the rules that apparently, Misters Robert Culin and John Parkinson and Ms. Narcissa Banes missed...punctuality is very much appreciated in this class; in fact, tardiness is _not_ appreciated." He peered at them sternly. 

"Sorry, these hallways are sooo long and confusing..." Narcissa smiled at him charmingly. Apparently he wasn't charmed because he ordered then to sit and deducted ten points each from them. 

So that made a thirty-point loss for Slytherin. Several of the other Slytherins gave them dirty looks as they sat. 

"That's why all of you are giving maps of the school," he told them and went on with what we'd be learning. 

"I don't think I'm going to enjoy the wand-battling part," I told my friends on the way to lunch a bit later once we'd been through Arithmacy. 

"Me either," Zara added. 

After lunch came Transfigurations. When we came in, all we saw was a cat on the desk. This class we had with Ravenclaws. 

Once we sat however, the cat suddenly enlarged and became a thin, sort of tall woman with dark hair tied back in a bun. She wore round small glasses and had a no-nonsense air about her. 

"Wow..." Amelia gasped along with several other students. My own mouth hung open. I was impressed! 

"Good afternoon, class, I am Professor McGonagall and I will be your Transformation teacher this year," she smiled at us. 

"Good afternoon..." we greeted. 

"Sooo, that began your first lesson with my demonstration..." Professor McGonagall went on with what we'd be learning. 

Even though she seemed rather strict, I sensed a warmth about her and I could tell that she looked out for each of her students. I had the feeling I was going to like Transfigurations class as well. I wondered if maybe I could perhaps eventually learn to transform into an animal. 

"...as for becoming an amigi, it is highly advanced and not recommended until fifth year and over. So this year, we will be beginning with changing small objects, then graduating to changing small animals next year," Professor McGonagall continued. "Bit by bit, as you all gain confidence, you will be able to grasp larger objects and more complex spells. Don't be discouraged if your first attempts are botched; it takes a few tries for the mind to learn these new spells." 

By the end of the class, McGonagall had a rapport with all of us and I felt like I'd been in her class for a long time instead of just over an hour on my first day. She reminded me of an aunt figure. I was rather sorry that the time went by so quickly and the class ended. 

Next was Charms, then our last class was History of Magic. The Charms teacher was a tiny bloke by the name of Professor Flitwick. He had grayish thin hair and a sprightly way about him. I liked him also. 

The History of Magic teacher was Professor Pierce. She also was rather strict, but warm like McGonagall. She was more dramatic and made a lot of grand gestures as she went over what we'd learn and gave us our homework for the night. I think she and McGonagall are friends since I've seen them sit next to each other at mealtimes and talk quite a bit. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"...So...turn this water...into wine..." a girl down the table from us chanted as we worked on our homework that night after dinner. We glanced up, but nothing happened. The water bubbled a little, but stayed water. 

I was working on the quiz at the end of the two chapters for Potions. The first day had been a bit scary, but we survived it in one piece. From them on, maybe it should be less scary. 

The girl, Amanda Bones, re-chanted the spell several more times, then eventually heaved a gusty sigh and did the spell again. Only this time, her wand tipped over her goblet and the water not only bubbled but splatted over several of her tablemates. It turned dark and fizzy. Some kids giggled. 

A boy, in fact, the boy with the longish black hair that I'd seen at breakfast, reached over and tasted the liquid with a finger. I'd learned his name was Sirius Black. 

"Not bad, Amanda...coke," he grinned. His friend who'd also been with him was there also and I knew now he was James Potter. 

"Well, close..." Amanda reached for a wad of napkins and wiped coke out of her hair and off the table. 

"Good try," I called encouragingly. I only hoped I could come close when it was my turn. Beside me, Amelia and Zara clapped softly. 

"Champions for the underdogs, I can tell..." someone muttered from the end where the Slytherins were gathered. There was snickering and I could tell it was from that threesome who'd been late to DADA this morning. 

"Gross..." Narcissa giggled. "Nerds like that we don't need." 

"Hey, Underdog nurses, whose disaster are you going to champion next?" John called over to us. 

"Who're you going to snicker at next or are you going to get a life next?" Zara shot back. Woooo... some of the Slytherin blokes whooped. John glared at us and so did his two cronies. We tried to ignore them and continued with our homework. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Later we were headed upstairs, the three of us when we heard whispering behind us. No one was there, so we continued onward to our dorms and entered. 

"Hey, I'm still a bit hungry," Amelia told us. "Anyone up to sneaking down to the kitchens for a snack?" We nodded. 

"Just as long as none of the prefects catch us," I stood. 

"Or Filch," Zara added. We made our way stealthily out and wound our way silently around several corridors. We heard Filch crooning once down the hall. 

"Shit..." I hissed. "Back here..." I pulled my friends into a huge chest and we hid until Filch and his scrawny cat had passed. Once Mrs. Norris sniffed the chest, but she screeched a little, then went on, I guess not finding anything behind the chest. We waited a minute, then climbed out, a bit shaky. We continued onward. 

"It this map is right, the kitchen is this way," Zara whispered. We eventually made it to the kitchens and in there were several tiny creatures with enormous eyes and skinny green little bodies. They were sooo cute! "House elves," Zara told us. 

"Hellooo, may Swinny be of assistance to you?" One elf with huge blue eyes peered up at us. She wore a little blue tea cloth. 

"Can you show us where the cheese and cookies are kept?" Zara asked. The elf showed us and we helped ourselves.   
  
"Thanks..." we told the elves and headed back upstairs with our loot. 

"Taking food to the latest underdog?" Someone drawled and we looked up to see John, Narcissa, and Robert sneering at us. 

"Oh, shit..." all three of us muttered. 

"My, my, my what language..." Narcissa jeered. 

"But then again, what can you expect from mere Gryffindors?" Robert snickered. They moved closer to us. 

"Sod off," I told them. 

"Come on, let's get away from company like this," Amelia added. We started the other way, but one of them grabbed one of our bags. Whirling around, Zara pulled out her wand. So did Amelia and I. Unfortunately, so did the Slytherin threesome. 

"Touch our stuff and you'll regret it," Zara growled. John started forward, but we trained our wands to push him back and if he tried again, maybe turn him into a half-duck, so he'd have to waddle back. 

Robert pulled out his wand and somehow what happened is hard to explain, but I guess our spells overloaded our wand circuits. All of us being inexperienced witches and wizards, spells were mixed, so Robert was given a dog's tail; Narcissa wound up with her blond hair turning purple to her horror and my friends and I winding up on the ceiling. 

The three of them took off and by the force of gravity, we were walking along the high ceiling upside-down. We started toward the nearest wall and tried to climb down, but gravity pulled as back to the ceiling as if the ceiling had become the floor for us. 

"God, this is like one of those books where the characters see the world upside-down," Amelia muttered. 

"Hey, this reminds me of when my sisters and I played astronauts in space," Zara quipped. 

"Yeah...only this time, we're under this spell and I wonder how in bloody hell we're going to get out of this mess," I worried. We thought a minute. I know we made quite a sight wandering along the ceiling, our hair hanging down. Everything looked weird and a little eerie upside down. Our bags of food were sitting on the floor below us. 

"If we could just get to..." Zara closed her eyes, seeming to think. 

"Too bad we don't have brooms," Amelia told us. 

"But brooms would just...we'd get off and wind up back up here again," Zara shook her head. "I'm thinking of something my older sisters used to do to rescue animals from trees...they used a spell and chanted...it was something like Wingardium Leviosa, but a variant of that and they'd lift it with their wands, so the animal wouldn't fall, then levitate it to the ground and get the gravity back up on the ground." She held up her wand. 

"So, shifting the gravity force?" I asked. 

"Yes, that's it..." Zara confirmed. 

"Let's do it," Amelia told us. "I'm getting dizzy from being upside down. The three of us held out our wands and chanted the spell. It worked slowly. We then floated in mid-air a minute, then clunked to the ground on our arses. 

_Whsssshhh_... Zara gasped and we let out our breaths in relief. My own heart was banging and we grabbed our things and ran the rest of the way to our dorms. 

Funny, but along one hallway, torches automatically lit as if sensing our presence. Once we got inside, we had a little snack in the common room with some of our dormmates. 

"God, the nerve of those three," Nadine Hooch rolled her eyes. We all knew now that Gryffindor and Slytherin were huge rivals. 

"I heard that Lucius Malfoy has his eyes on Narcissa," Melissa Patil put in. 

"Who's Lucius?" several of us first-years asked. Melissa was a second year. 

"Lucius is from one of the filthiest richest families around here," Melissa supplied. "He's a fourth year and struts around here like he owns the place. Tall, very blond slick kind of hair, walks with his nose so far in the air it's a miracle he doesn't trip over anything. 

"Narcissa's family's wealthy too," she went on after finishing a cracker. " They consider themselves purebloods since their families are all wizard and witch. Anyone who comes from muggle roots, they consider beneath them. Mudblood is their favorite word for muggle-born witches and wizards." Yuck, Lucius did sound disgusting from what Melissa was describing. 

"It would serve him right if he did trip," a third year added and we laughed. 

"Clever spell you used for getting yourselves down," Nadine told us. She pulled out her notebook and we gave her the spell. "It could come in handy one day." 

It was getting late, so we headed upstairs to turn in for the night. My friends and I lay awake a while whispering little things back and forth before we drifted off to sleep. So, it had been quite a first day here at Hogwarts. I had the feeling this was going to be one adventuresome year.   
  
  


More coming soon! Later will be a sort of plot twist involving something Lily and her friends find out about the four founders of Hogwarts! 


	6. Happy Eleventh Birthday, Lily!

**Lily's Beginning: Year One At Hogwarts**

_By_: CNJ 

_PG-13_

**6: Happy Eleventh Birthday, Lily!**   


**Lily:**

"Happy birthday, Lily!" Amelia, Zara, and a couple of my dormmates crowed that Friday night after our first week at Hogwarts. Zara put down a small cake with eleven little candles glowing above it. They were floating, glittering blue candles and the sight took my breath away. 

I took a huge breath and blew out all the candles. The others whooped softly, being that it was nine in the evening and we didn't want to get too loud. 

I just couldn't believe I was eleven. Eleven sounds so much older than ten. Amelia and Zara each passed a wrapped gift to me. 

"Oh, wow....thank you!" I gasped, my eyes widening. The gift from Amelia turned out to be a book..._Hogwarts: A History_ to be exact. I hugged her. She knows I've been curious about Hogwarts, especially its founders. I've heard each of our houses are named after a founder. 

Zara's gift was quill pens that glittered with whatever music I happened to be thinking about at the time. Little melodies even danced across one of them on its feathers. I hugged Zara thanks also. 

"Ready to dig in?" Nadine asked. We were, so for the next half hour or so, we feasted on the extra food we'd siphoned off from the generosity of the house elves. 

Then we played exploding snap while having our cake. I was really feeling at home here now and Professor Pierce was right in stating that our housemates would be like our families. 

Once we finally headed up to bed, I saw a small pile of parcels on my bed. Birthday greetings and gifts from Mum and dad, I realized. _Wow_, I breathed, opening one gift to reveal a necklace with the Gryffindor logo on it. 

Once I opened everything, I penned a note thanking my parents, then added in the postscript, _This necklace will go very nicely with my Gryffindor sweatshirt_. 

I sent the thank you note via Lemon to my parents before climbing into bed. The paper fell around my bed, but I figured I'd take care of the mess in the morning just this once. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

I spent most of the next day reading _Hogwarts: A History_. It was a very long book, over nine hundred pages, but had some interesting little facts. The four founders were Salazar Slytherin, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Godric Gryffindor. The school was founded in the 1000's. 

Yes, the founders did have mostly the same personality traits as the house students...Salazar was the planner of the group and very stealthy; Godric was courageous and barreled ahead no matter how bad things seemed; Helga was very loyal and stuck by her friends and fellow founders while Rowena was very logical and practical. 

Rowena was the one who'd designed most of the school's inside. Godric was the one who dealt with the sellers of the castle and it was his persistence that convinced the sellers to sell the castle to the founders. 

The book itself was very old, but was magically updated periodically, so the new print automatically appeared right alongside the old text. Well, that certainly saved time and money; in the muggle world, new editions have to be reprinted with new paper and ink being used. 

By dinner, I'd read about a hundred and seventy pages, so I bookmarked it with a wandmark and headed downstairs. 

I had to pee, so close to the Great Hall, I turned into one deserted bathroom. It was a lot bigger than the ones upstairs and I sensed it wasn't a bathroom used very often. The lighting was spotty and as I peed, I got a slightly creepy feeling. I thought I heard a slight whine, then a sniffle. 

"Who's there..." I asked, my voice breaking a bit. I cleared my throat, wiped myself, flushed the toilet, then asked, "Is anyone here?" I pulled out my wand in case I needed it. 

I was startled to see something white slither out of the toilet I'd just used. I jumped out of the booth. The white form was just a ghost. It was a young girl, maybe around twelve or thirteen and she had dark hair in pigtails, glasses and a very morose, rather sullen look on her face. "Oh, hello..." 

"I'm anyone..." the ghost wailed, then appeared to be teary-eyed. 

"Are you all right?" I asked.   
  
"I'm never all right..." the ghost started wailing.   
  
"Oh...that's...too bad..." I didn't know what else to say. "Well...I'm Lily...Lily Evans and you are...?" 

"Myrtle...although I hear the gossip of everyone calling me Moaning Myrtle," the ghost hiccupped. "As if everyone making fun of me is a big joke..." 

I hoped she wasn't this unhappy when she was living. I idly wondered how she'd died and decided to put off asking about it for a while. 

"Yeah, I know how that is..." I nodded. "I mean, before I came here just this year, my sister used to make fun of me, so I know how it hurts." 

Myrtle started fresh wails and I wondered if maybe that had been the right thing to say. "Oh, hey, Myrtle, it'll be all right..." She floated up to the ceiling, hiccupping. "So...how long have you been here?" 

"Since my deathday, of course, which was over twenty-five years ago," Myrtle told me.   
  
"Oh, that's hard..." I nodded. "I just turned eleven yesterday...I was reading this great book about Hogwarts history and learned a lot about the four founders...they're quite a group." 

"I bet the book doesn't say that the Slytherins used to own this place," Myrtle kind of smirked sideways at me. 

"No, I haven't gotten that far yet," I admitted.   
  
"They did. The Slytherins lived here for generations until two hundred years ago...that's why Salazar turned on the others and especially ended up bitter toward Godric." 

"Wow...I didn't know that yet...thanks for the imput," I said in surprise. "Hey...Myrtle...it was a pleasure meeting you, but I have to eat...dinnertime..." Myrtle became morose and drooped again and I hoped she wouldn't start crying again. 

She didn't, at least not until I was out of the bathroom and on my way to the Great Hall. When I got there, the food was already on the table and my friends had started serving themselves. I sat, my heart pounding a little. 

"Hey, Lily..." my friends greeted. 

"Thought you'd fallen asleep reading that book," Zara quipped. 

"I was reading the book, but stayed awake." I helped myself to some shepherd's pie. "I found out some fascinating information about this school and the four founders. I also stopped to pee and ran into Moaning Myrtle..." I told them about my encounter and what Myrtle had told me about the Slytherins once owning this castle. 

"I'd heard something about that too from my parents," Zara put in. "I heard that Salazar got greedy and wanted to take over the school, but the others managed to stop him by putting out a will or something...Salazar became bitter and broke off from the group, then vowed to one day come back and clear the school of anyone not of 'pure' blood, whatever he means by that. Thank goodness he never did." 

"I wonder if any of the founders every had any offspring..." I wondered. 

"I wonder if they have any descendants living today," Amelia put in. "Wouldn't that be something if some of their descendants are right here at this school with us and in our classes and all?" That would be interesting. 

"It actually wouldn't be surprising," I added. "I just hope Salazar didn't pass any of his attitudes down to any offspring he might have had." 

We looked around at the four tables, each one representing different personalities, yet drawn together with one mission...to become full-fledged witches and wizards. How each of us would go about the mission was yet to be known.   
  
  


More later! 


	7. Opportunity Rising From Mortification

**_A/N_: **Hii, thanks for all the reviews! I noticed there was some confusion on McGonagall's position as well as the whereabouts of Hagrid and Dumbledore. For variety and artistic purposes to make it more realistic, I varied some of the positions, making them A/U. Dumbledore and Hagrid arrive much later, maybe in Lily's seventh year. 

As for the reviewer who commented on the similarity between Lily's sorting hat experience and Harry's experience, it was designed that way; if you read the disclaimer at the beginning, you'll see that I mentioned that many of Lily's experiences are very, very similar to Harry's; I've always suspected that Harry is very much like his mum in behavior and personality, so throughout the story, you'll see that they behave similarly and have some similar experiences. But the big plotline will be different. 

Also, although they never mention a school newspaper or a music band in any of the four books, I added some more fictional extracurricular activities to liven things up and have some students join them. Glad so many of you like this story so much! Thanks for reviewing, all of you! Sooo, here's more!   


**Lily's Beginning: Year One At Hogwarts**

_By_: CNJ 

_PG-13_

**7: Opportunity Rising From Mortification**

**Lily:**

So, our mission continued onward...all of us training to become witches and wizards and my two friends and I seeing what more we could find out about Hogwarts' founders. 

September passed fairly quickly, it seemed, maybe because there was so much to learn and see. By the third week in September, we were having our first flying lessons on brooms. 

It felt odd at first floating in the air, then actually leaning forward and moving through air. And I thought the only way humans could fly was by plane, I thought as we practiced hovering under Professor Monet's instructions. 

When you start flying, you tell the broom, _up_ and it's supposed to fly into your hand, then you mount it and if you want to float, you kick off from the ground. If you want to move forward, you lean forward and if you want to slow down or stop, you lean back. 

I got it all right. But when you're new at flying, it takes a few tries and a few times telling the broom up. Zara and Amelia along with James Potter and Nadine Hooch turned out to be among the fastest fliers in the class; they only had to say _up_ once before the broom flew into their hands. 

Mine jumped a few times before coming up and at one point, it fell back and bumped my shoulder. Sirius' broom shot up and flew across the field into a statue by the entrance and he had to run and get it. Heaving a gusty sigh, he told it impatiently, "Uuuup..." It flew behind him, but this time it landed right behind him. 

Someone snickered and Sirius snapped, "Just shut up, Snape!" James grinned and Sirius glared at him. Severus and James both snorted with laughter. Sirius gave them a filthy look as he retrieved his broom. 

By the following week, all of us knew how to float and fly forward at low speeds. Nadine flew the highest of all of us. 

"Heyyy, maybe you'll make Quidditch!" Zara called to her. 

"I'd love that," Nadine reluctantly came back down. "But I'm not counting on this year; first and second years rarely make the teams." 

"It wouldn't hurt to try out, at least next year," Amelia added. "I'm thinking of trying out." 

"Me too..." Zara chimed in. Several others added their imput, including James and Sirius, who said they'd try out too. 

I don't think I'll try out since I'm not one of the most athletic people on the face of this planet. However, I have thought of writing for the Hogwarts newspaper, the _Owl Express_; it looks interesting. 

Later, my friends and I headed to our dorms late that afternoon talking about several things and I mentioned maybe writing for the Hogwarts _Owl Express_. Amelia said she'd like to try that one too when she's older. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

September faded into October and outside, the leaves burst into an amazing multitude of colors. It was really beautiful. Zara's an artist, so on several occasions, I found her by the window or outside after classes and on weekends, sketching the colors of the trees. 

The colors were even more vivid here around the mountains outside of London than right in the city since here the air was cleaner. My parents and I owled back and forth on a regular basis. 

_ It's really fall here_, I owled to Mum and Dad one Friday evening in mid-October. _ Oh, if you could just see what a blaze of colors the trees present! And here in the magical world, there are even more colors than the muggle world.___

_ We've learned to fly on brooms, so now we can really see the trees. My friends and I sometimes fly up on weekends and just hover over the woods. The trees make a wonderful contrast to the mountains and sky. There's also a beautiful lake here too at the foot of the mountains. Nights are very cold now and they've turned on the heat. Is it cold back home?_

I went on to describe a few more things and to ask how they were. At first, I'd tried to touch base with Petunia out of decency, but she wrote one stinging nasty note back, so that was that, at least for now. It hurts some that she's written me off like this, but I try not to brood on it; I have too much else to learn about and go for than to dwell on Petunia. 

I really feel like I'm settling in here; Hogwarts has become a second home to me. I sent the letter off with Lemon and sat back, surveying the cluttered red and yellow dorm. 

Almost everyone has at least one Gryffindor sweatshirt. Several of the older students have their own brooms and several Quidditch robes lay about. Almost everyone was out, so I had most of the dorm to myself. 

I smiled softly as I saw the bariol by my bed. Mum and Dad had given it to me for my tenth birthday and I love to play it. Mum tells me I have an ear for music and I've even written a few songs, although I've never really shown them to anyone. Maybe someday I will. 

Once in a while, Hogwarts puts on musical plays, so maybe if I can work up my nerve, I could try out for one of the musicals. Oh, I better explain what a bariol is to muggles...they've never seen one...it's a round instrument that resembles a violin and almost sounds like a violin, but it's smaller and rounder; the sounds are also much more versatile. I hope it's a somewhat decent explanation; but the sounds are very hard to explain; it's something you have to hear and it's more complex to learn how to play than the muggle violin. 

I have played the violin a long time ago and it's also enjoyable to play. I picked up my bariol and began to play softly. Music has always had a soothing effect on me; it takes me into another world, especially when life here is very painful, which it sometimes was back in primary school when other kids sometimes made fun of me for being different or when Petunia was mean to me. 

I don't know how long I played, but it was a melody I was composing. It's isn't complete yet, but I'm working on it as I go along. 

I've written a few words for it also; it's something about a mum's love saving her child's life in great danger. It's been a thought floating around lately...what if an evil sorcerer ever attacked me and I had a child? I'd pour my love into saving her, of course. There'd be no question about it, even if I died in the process. 

A garble of voices rose from the common room and a few words floated into my consciousness. "...at Honeydukes..." "last time we were at Hogsmeade..." they sounded like a couple of older girls. 

I'd vaguely heard of Hogsmeade and that third year student and older go there some weekends. I heard them slowly coming up and I looked up to notice that they were damp. I hadn't realized that it was raining out. 

"Hello..." they called. 

"Hello..." I lowered my bariol and we smiled at each other. 

"You're good!" one girl told me; her name is Renee Bowers. 

"Thanks..." I placed the bariol in my case and closed it carefully. "Did you have a good time at Hogsmeade?" 

"Sure did..." another girl, I didn't remember her name nodded. "It's a wicked place...all this food and sweets..." 

"Ohhh, don't torture her," the third girl threw me a sympathetic look. "Don't worry, dear, the next two years will fly by and you'll be able to go into Hogsmeade too." I nodded. Actually, I didn't mind hearing about these Hogsmeade expeditions. In fact, I was curious to know more about this Hogsmeade. 

"So...what exactly is Hogsmeade?" I asked. 

"It's a small village close by here," Renee explained as they pulled off their outer cloaks and dried each other off with drying spells. "Third years and up can go on some weekends and it's a cluster of little shops and eateries and sweet places. Honeydukes is the ultimate sweetie shop; they have every kind of sweet you can imagine." 

"Even chocolate?" Zara's voice came up from behind them and she and Amelia came in. 

"Yep..." Renee nodded and the six of us sat. I scooted back to make room for them. The older girls, all third years, told us about various stories they'd heard of previous students who'd gone to Hogsmeade. 

It was not only a hang about place, but also a place for various social dynamics. The girls, who introduced themselves as Renee Bowers, Shirley Fenster, and Marion Sweden told us about an incident last year where and Arthur Weasley punched Lucius Malfoy for a nasty prank he'd played by the Shrieking Shack. 

"God, I'd love to have seen that," Shirley added. We'd actually seen Lucius around and he was very snooty and had this slick, pale blond hair. Good thing we don't have to share any classes with him, I thought. I'd also found out he's on the Quidditch team and seen him hanging about with Narcissa and her two male cronies lately. 

"What year is Arthur in?" Renee asked. "He's a fifth year, right?" 

"Yeah..." Her friends confirmed. "I think he and Molly Stuseins are starting to see each other." 

"Molly Stusein..." I muttered, trying to picture which one she was. 

"Fourth year, tall with red hair," Marion told us. "In fact, her hair almost matches yours, Lily." Now I remembered her. We talked until late. They passed a few sweeties they had to us. 

Other students trickled in and we got ready for bed. Once the lights were out, I listened sleepily to the rain rattling at the windows and reached out to pet Lemon, who was back from her trip to my parents.' 

"I'm looking forward to our third year," Amelia told me from her bed. 

"Me too..." I agreed. 

"Just think, we'd be able to tell first years then about the dynamics of the school," Zara added. I grinned in the dark. That would be neat. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

By late October, the weather was definitely cold and my dormmates and I stocked up on hot tea. Saturdays often found us curled up by the fireplace with our tea and warm biscuits. Rain alternated with crisp clear fall days and most of the leaves vanished from the trees. 

By then, I'd settled into a routine, my friends and I. Weekdays of course were occupied with classes; late afternoons, we'd drop our things off at the dorm and either chat or owl our parents, then it'd be time for dinner. 

Evenings were mostly taken up with homework. There was quite a bit more homework here than in primary school. I got on well with my teachers, especially Professors McGonagall and Pierce. 

Professor Norris was a marinet and very controlling, but once I knew where he drew his authoritarian line, I even got on well in his class. I discovered I actually liked working on spells to fend off the dark arts; it was almost like an artistic form. I told this much to my friends one evening as we settled in front of the fireplace with tea and our books. 

"It's hardly surprising since you are musically gifted," Amelia told me. "And Zara, you're good in that class too. I think Norris is impressed with you two, but tries not to show it." We laughed softly, then worked on our homework a while. 

After about an hour, I felt like eating something, so I headed down to the kitchen after seeing if my friends wanted anything. I got a batch of cookies from a house elf and was on my way up when I heard a soft yowl. Mrs. Norris seemed to leap out of nowhere and she peered up at me, then snarled in a screech. 

"It's all right, it's all right..." I said softly to her as I edged on past. _Reeeeeeooeer!_ Mrs. Norris shrieked and seemed to glare at me. Mrs. Norris means Filch is around, so I looked around nervously and sure enough, I heard Filch's crooning and saw a glow of a lamp. 

"Is there someone skulking around heeere?" I heard Filch singsong. "I better not catch them..." 

"Shit..." I muttered fearfully, ducking behind a suit of armor, my heart hammering. I did not feel like dealing with the crabby caretaker tonight. As he rounded the corner, I silently blessed my small size and curled into a ball, hoping Mrs. Norris didn't sniff me out.__

_ I wonder if she's related to Professor Norris_, I thought in a quirk. I had to press a hand over my mouth, so I would snicker and give myself away. I hoped my shaking wouldn't rattle the armor. 

Filch and Mrs. Norris seemed to take three years just crossing the corridor and I could see Filch's sharp pale eyes peering around, looking to catch any scurrying away students. Once they went on, I let my breath out. 

I sat for a few minutes to make sure they were really gone. I shakily stood and as I headed back to the dorm, I swallowed; whether it was from relief or anxiety, I really don't know, but the sound of that swallow seemed to echo through the vast hall and bounce off the walls. I made it back and passed around the cookies. 

"Filch didn't catch you did he?" Zara asked as we munched. 

"Alm-most..." I bit into a cookie. My hand shook and I dropped it. "That cat of his is so strange...she seems to actually sense human fear. Hey, I wonder if she might be an animigus." 

"She might even be related to Professor Norris!" Amelia laughed. "She certainly has Norris's pale, piercing eyes." We all chuckled at that, then finished up on our homework and cookies before heading to bed. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

DADA class hadn't started yet, so I dashed off a quick note to Amelia and Zara, finishing with _I really wonder if Mrs. Norris really is Professor Norris' great-aunt or something_. I started to levitate the paper over to them. It was written in clear ink, so they'd just drop some ink on it to see it briefly, then it would go blank. 

But just then, Professor Norris came in and as luck would have it, his cold eyes zeroed in on my note floating toward Amelia's desk and my wand in the air. Once the teacher came in, then class was officially on, so... 

"Ms. Evans, levitate that paper, which I know is a note, over to me," he demanded. Oh, dear...I looked helplessly at Professor Norris. Trapped, I did as he commanded. 

I sank into my seat then, blushing a deep red. My friends looked on in sympathy. Somewhere in the back, someone giggled. I think it was Sirius Black. 

Professor Norris peered at it a minute, held a pen and dropped ink over it. My heart banged in fear that he'd read the note out loud and embarrass me. But for some odd reason he didn't just yet and I let out my breath. 

"Ten points off Gryffindor for note-passing," he told me crisply, then began the class. The lesson was detecting sinister spells in parchments and warding them off. 

"Now, let's see how many of you can guess which is the innocent harmless letter and which is the potentially dangerous one. Everyone hold your quills over the papers I will pass out. You will each get two. Drop the ink over each one. Once you see the spell forming use your wands to turn off the spell. I will then come around to make sure you all did the right one." 

He passed around the papers and the next few minutes was silent as our messages materialized. I knew the one with the silvery moving ink on it was the deadly one, so I zapped it with my wand before it could leap up and shock me. Most of us had luck, but a few didn't. 

"Owwww...." someone in the back yelped as she was burned some by a green paper darkening. I heard someone snicker again and some people turned to look over at me. 

"Hey, good question, Lils," Solin Wade called over to me. 

"Wh-what question?" I faltered, getting a weird feeling about this. 

"About Filch's cat being a long-lost great aunt of Norris's," she started to laugh. "Hey, did you see the good message?" Some of the other kids were laughing and I could feel myself turn bright red again. 

I got it now. Norris hadn't actually read my note out loud, but he'd duplicated it and distributed it to several of my classmates. 

The half of the class who'd been treated to my note was laughing like mad by now and I sank lower in my seat, wanting to just vanish. Come on, just let this class be over with. I couldn't look at Professor Norris or most of the class. 

I did catch my friends' glances and they kind of smiled shakily as if they were kind of sorry. Oh, swell, now I have them feeling sorry for me when I'm so embarrassed. 

"Hey, Evans, going to trace some family history?" John Parkinson jeered. He, Narcissa, and Robert were howling with laughter. 

"No, she's going to lose herself in her baaariiiiol this afternoon with her latest little song she's writing..." Narcissa singsonged. "How sweet, she's an artsy fiddle head." They laughed even harder and I peered at the floor. 

"Just shut up..." I heard Zara bark. I saw Amelia give them a dirty look. After what seemed like ten hours, the class ended and my friends and I scrambled out of there as if an evil curse were chasing us. 

"Oh, God, how the hell am I going to sit through another class?' I fought back tears. 

"Hey, come, it'll blow over in a few days," Zara put an arm around me as we headed to Arithmacy. 

"I think that horrid threesome jealous because you're talented," Amelia told me, stroking my back. That made me feel a bit better and I was able to look up and walk on to Arithmacy. 

We had an exam in Arithmacy, so there at least I was free of jeers and laughter. But in later classes and even in the corridors, I even saw some of the older students look over at me and snicker. 

"Oh, dear, if Norris passed on my note to the entire school..." I muttered fearfully that early evening as we walked into dinner. Thank Merlin I didn't have anything really personal in that note or I'd have fainted right there in class. 

"Heyy, look at that funny pumpkin face," Zara laughed, pointing up at all the carved-out pumpkins floating from the ceiling. Right, I'd forgotten tonight was Halloween. 

Some of the pumpkin faces were very funny and made us students laugh while others were merely grinning and some were scary. Some of the mouths even moved. One had a mouth that opened hugely and leaped toward the tables. 

Pumpkin pie was for dessert after dinner. I was feeling calmer as we headed upstairs after dinner to work on our homework. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Then it was November. By the end of the week, the trees were almost bare and now a wintry grayness settled over the Hogwarts grounds. Nights hovered below freezing. 

Quidditch season was about to start and all about, older students who were on the Quidditch teams geared up for their first game. This Saturday would be the first game, Slytherin versus Ravenclaw. 

"So, are you going to go?" Zara asked us as we headed to the dorms after classes that first Thursday in November. We nodded. I'm not too much into sports, but I thought it would be interesting to watch a magical sport and see how it was different from muggle sports like football or skiing. 

"...am going to kick those Ravenclaw losers' arses big time!" we heard a loud voice boast and Lucius Malfoy came hurtling past us with three cronies. One of them crashed into us and I had to struggle to keep from falling. The cronies turned out to be none other than Narcissa, John, and Robert. 

"Well, don't excuse yourselves or anything..." Amelia said under her breath as we stepped away from them. 

"Well, some people don't have manners around here," Lucius turned around and sneered at us. "You'd think they'd excuse themselves after bumping into us so ruuudely..." 

"I think you're the ones that barreled into us," Zara stated. 

"Zara...let's not start anything..." I whispered. 

"No, you don't want to start anything, Evans?" Robert snickered. "Looks like you started a good laugh around Hogwarts with that little note you published in Defense class last week." I felt my face flush again as their laughter rose up and surrounded us. 

"Yesss, I saw it too," Lucius stepped in front of us and towered over us. I guessed him to be about six feet and he had the coldest gray eyes I'd ever seen, colder than Professor Norris' eyes. 

"You know, he's passed your masterpiece on to everyone. Your eloquent written little note...maybe it'll be framed and put in the Hall of Fame..." they broke up laughing again as the three of us tried to sidestep them. 

"And maybe Lily's writing will!" someone else called. Oh, great, more kids joining the fun. An older girl was headed our way. "Get lost, Malfoy and take your little band with you!" 

The girl had her wand out. I guessed her to be a fifth or sixth year. "Go on..." she spoke in a no-nonsense tone that reminded me of Professor McGonagall. Thank Merlin, the four Slytherins parted. 

"Thanks..." we all smiled at her and she smiled back. She introduced herself as Arlene McMinish. 

"And Lily, your writing is impressive, I saw the note." 

"Yes..." I flushed again, wondering if I'd ever hear the end of this. "Professor Norris embarrassed me nearly into a faint when he mass produced it for the class to read." 

"I'm so impressed with your grasp of grammar and command of language that I wonder if you might be interested in taking on the part of a first-year reporter for the _Owl Express_." Arlene grinned. "We could use writing skills like yours at our paper." 

"Oh..." I didn't know what to say a minute. 

"Go on...it's a jewel..." Amelia grinned. Zara nodded encouragingly. 

"You could give those jackasses a comeback that it got you an honored spot," Zara put in. 

"And...like most extracurriculars, it's also unusual for first, second, or third years to be invited to join the _Owl Express_," Arlene told me. 

"Yes, sure..." I nodded. 

"First meeting is the following Monday at four in the North underwing behind the owlery," Arlene told me. "I look forward to meeting you there." She grinned and walked on. 

"Wow..." was all I could think of to say. 

"Hey, this is great!" my friends chimed in. "Way to go, Lily!" "Congrats!" My friends and I hugged right there in the hall, then continued on down the corridor to our dorms. Wait until I owled my parents tonight to tell them about this! 

My imagination took flight on things I could possibly write about. Hey, maybe this would also be a chance to find out more things about what transpired with Hogwarts' founders! Who'd have thought such a mortifying incident would turn into a swell opportunity?   
  
  


Next chapter will be a very interesting Quidditch match. 


	8. Lily's Rare Gift

**Lily's Beginning: Year One at Hogwarts**

_By_: CNJ 

_PG-13_

**8: Lily's Rare Gift**

**Lily:**

"I wish it were Gryffindor playing today instead of Ravenclaw or Slytherin," Zara told us as the three of us found seats in the high bleachers that first Saturday afternoon in November. "Wynona's one of the Beaters for the team." 

"Yeah, I can't wait," I nodded. It was a sunny, but cold blustery windy afternoon and I could see a lot of people holding on to hats and scarves. My own scarf blew like the displayed Ravenclaw and Slytherin flags from time to time. 

It seemed as if most of Hogwarts turned out for this match, both teachers and students. I could see Professors McGonagall and Pierce seated next to each other, talking. Professor Vester stood near them and peered around. 

"Hey, there're Nadine and Melissa..." Amelia waved at them. We waved them over and they slowly made their way over. It was a tight squeeze, but we moved around enough to make room for all of us. 

"Did you all read about that dragon that escaped from the magical lab this morning?" Nadine told us. I'd heard something about it, but the others hadn't. "It's a blueback diamond dragon, potentially dangerous." 

Just then, the Quidditch players rode out on their brooms. I'd seen some of them in the halls, but the only player I knew was Lucius, who was one of the Slytherin Chasers. 

"Maaaaaalfoyyyy!" I heard someone scream from the opposite end of the bleachers where the Slytherin students sat and sure enough, I saw Narcissa waving wildly trying to get his attention. 

"Some people will do anything for attention..." Melissa snorted and we snickered softly. Narcissa jumped up and down several times. John and Robert were with her. 

I guess Robert got sick of her carrying on, because he pulled her down. I think Lucius saw her, but didn't pay much attention to her. In the field, Professor Monet stood in the field holding the Quaffle. She blew a whistle. 

"Now, this game is going to be nice and...clean, isn't it?" she asked. Some players nodded. "Is it?" she asked again. 

"Yessss..." both of the Quidditch teams chimed. 

"She _wishes_..." Melissa muttered. 

Professor Monet tossed the Quaffle and the Snitch and the game started. The first hour or so was a flurry of Quaffle-chasing, tangled brooms and whizzing brooms. Ravenclaw and Slytherin alternated scoring, so it was neck to neck. 

I noticed a lot of the Slytherins were either showing off on their brooms or snatching the Quaffle from each other and bickering over who would be the one to shoot the Quaffle. Lucius snatched the Quaffle from Byrd Winslow at one point. 

Byrd chased after him, yelling, "Give me that, you sneaky bastard!" Lucius sniggered and kept going, pushing other players out of the way. Byrd caught up to him and for a minute there was a tug-of-war between them. 

Both of them ended up falling off their brooms, flat on the ground. Professor Monet had to call a time out. Lifting them both up, she dressed them down. 

Of course, they each tried to blame each other, but she just told them to knock it off and get in there and play like team players. So, resentfully, they got back onto their brooms and the game continued. 

"You know what is swell?" Zara asked at one point. 

"Yeah..." I nodded. 

"More and more women and girls are on the teams," Zara told me. 

"Yes, it is," I agreed. Amelia nodded. 

"I was just reading in the _Daily Prophet_ that finally Quidditch has some teams that are mostly or all female compared to the past," Amelia put in. I'd heard that too. "Until twenty years ago, the Chudley Canons only had one woman on their team, now they've added more." 

I thought about the muggle world, where women are slowly gaining equality in the world. We're so lucky to be living now in the early seventies. 

Mum's able to have a great career and so are a lot of other women and even here are a lot of great female professors. Actually, it seemed like the magical world was appreciably ahead of the muggle world in that aspect. 

"Heeeeeey!" I heard one of the Slytherin players bellow and I saw that Lucius had knocked him off the broom and apparently had snatched the Quaffle away and was heading toward the hoops with it. He had a gleeful grin on his face. 

"Heyyyy, one of the Seekers is about to catch the snitch..." Amelia pointed. Sure enough, the two Seekers were practically neck-to-neck. 

The Ravenclaw Seeker, Grace Fenster had her arm out. The Slytherin Seeker, I didn't know his name was knocking into her, trying to knock her off her broom. Suddenly, the Slytherin Seeker seemed to drop back. 

"Goooo, Grace!" someone bellowed from the Ravenclaw bleachers. The next few minutes several things seemed to happen at once. 

Lucius was so busy going for the hoops and was showing off in the process that he wasn't paying attention to an oncoming Bludger. The Bludger knocked the Quaffle away from him. 

I had to stifle a snicker at the shocked, indignant look on his face once he realized that he no longer had the Quaffle and was by the hoops. A Ravenclaw Keeper shrugged and smirked at him. 

At the same time, the Slytherin Seeker zoomed up in front of Grace, causing her to crash into him and fall backward off her broom and it was he who ended up catching the snitch. 

A huge roar went up from the Slytherin side. Lucius scowled down at the Seeker for stealing the show. From the Ravenclaw side, I could hear yells and moans of "Ohhh, shiiiit..." and "...that rat just pushed her off..." and other complaints. 

"Slytherin wins!" the announcer, Erin Piller announced. "Gregory Banwall has the snitch and it's two hundred to one hundred and fifty. Very close match, the closest we've had in years..." she went on for a few more minutes. Gregory paraded about with the little gold Snitch and gloated at Lucius, who looked like he'd just been named runner-up in an awards pageant. 

We then got ready to leave. My friends and I waited until some of the crowd had thinned out before starting out ourselves. Just then, we heard a sort of scratching sound in the distance that progressed into a low roar. 

"What's that...?" someone called. The roar got louder until it was a gravelly sort of growl. 

"It's the dragon!" someone bellowed. 

"My God!" "Merlin!" were some of the shouts that rose up from the stands. Some students screamed, others ran while teachers rounded everyone up, or tried to. My friends and I were near the end, so we tried to stay calm. Looking up, I saw a blue dragon flying toward us. 

"Repello flamare..." several teachers chanted. I knew that was the spell to repel dragon's fire. 

Students were still screaming and panicking. Some got inside, while others milled around helplessly. 

My friends and I climbed down around the huddle close to the field. Good thing we were close to the bottom because in all the mayhem, we wound up falling under the bleachers and unto the ground below. A shadow crossed over the bleachers and we tried to lie still. 

"What do you know about dragons?" Zara asked us shakily. There were five of us under there...Zara, Amelia, Nadine, Melissa, and me. 

"Just that the blue dragon can be dangerous and its flames can burn..." Melissa shrugged. We started to edge out toward the castle, but the dragon was overhead. Everyone else had proceeded indoors, so here we were alone with the dragon. 

"I think it's the one that escaped from the lab," Amelia whispered. "Is there any spells we can do to stun it or anything?" 

"N-no..." Nadine's teeth were rattling and I could tell it wasn't because of the cold. I was shivering too. "Unless it has a nick on its hide or some open spot." The dragon opened its mouth and the a whoosh went up and we saw flames licking at the benches. 

"Oh, Merlin, let's get out of here..." I cried. 

"And get ourselves fried?" Zara croaked. 

"We'll get fried if we stay here under these stands," Melissa pointed out. "Hey, I remembered...it can only blow out flames at one-minute intervals, so at the next minute, let's make a run for it toward the woods." We nodded. 

It would be too long to run straight to the school, so the woods would have to do. At the next minute, we did just that. I felt something hit my arm with a jolt, but ignored it. 

Right as we got to the edge, the dragon, which was now on the ground, followed and opened its mouth for another gush of fire. It was about twenty feet. 

I gulped at the sight of the hard-looking blue hide and its spikes running down its back. The next minute is a blur, but what happened next is almost too incredible to explain. 

One minute I was on the ground with my friends and the next, I seemed to be in the air floating toward the dragon. Closer I got until I could see a faint greenish tinge and scales in its back. It was getting ready to shoot out more flames. 

"Repello flamare!" I bellowed. The rush that came out actually started out almost as an orange mist, then seemed to solidify into fire. 

"REPELLO FLAMARE!" I yelled again, holding out my wand. I ducked out of the way just in time to avoid the flames and I was relieved that my friends apparently had too.__

_ Stun it_, I told myself. Some open spot, I remembered Nadine saying. Its mouth would open again. 

It felt odd to be just floating in air and vaguely I remembered an incident as a small child, maybe when I was around three of something like this happening...I'd seemed to float above my body once when Petunia was getting ready to push me down a flight of stairs. 

I watched until its mouth opened again, came as close as I dared, feeling a chilling fear race through me. I could die doing this, but I'll be saving my friends and maybe everyone else at Hogwarts. 

I could see the deep red interior of its mouth and once I got close enough to see down its throat, I chanted the stunning spell...and backed off quickly as the mouth snapped closed. The dragon seemed to slow down. 

I felt a cord tugging me and the next thing I was aware of was that I was flat on the ground in the forest with my friends. 

"Lily...Lily, are you...?" Amelia was stroking my cheek. 

"Whh..." I groggily sat up, wondering what had just happened. "Yes, I'm..." Up ahead, we saw the dragon fall over on its side and apparently lose consciousness. "It worked..." I whispered. 

"What?" the others chimed in. 

"I used the stunning spell in its mouth," I told the others. "Somehow I separated from my body and came close and stunned it by chanting the spell inside the opening...its mouth." 

"We thought you'd fainted..." Zara told me. "We're glad you're all right." 

"You left your body...?" Melissa asked. 

"I...think so...it's happened before when I was frightened..." I briefly told the others about my experience at three as we headed back to Hogwarts. Once we got close to the door, the door flew open and Professors Pierce and Vester came out. 

"Are you girls all right?" They asked seemingly at once. "Where were you?" "What happened?" We told them, bit by bit. 

"Lily stunned the dragon," Zara told them. 

"Lily...how?" Pierce stared toward the inert dragon at the edge of the woods. "My dear...you've burned your arm...did you know how dangerous it would be?" I nodded and looking down, realized that indeed, I did have a long burn on my left arm. 

"We fell through the benches," Amelia told her. "Since we were the last ones in, it was safer to head toward the woods where there'd be temporary shelter...and Lily had her soul split from her body, so that's how she stunned the dragon." 

"Astral projection..." Professor Vester nodded as we walked inside. 

"What?" All five of us turned to our Headmaster in puzzlement. 

"Astral projection is what what happened with Lily is called," Professor Vester clarified. "It's a very rare gift indeed and apparently, you, Ms. Evans seem to possess it." 

"Wow..." I whispered. Imagine having some gift that few people have. 

"I'd better contact the lab and have Xyron bound the dragon up to take back to the lab," Professor Pierce announced. "We're relieved you're all right...and in addition, Gryffindor gains twenty points for each of you for your courage and level-headedness in a dangerous situation. Lily, why don't you head over to the hospital wing to have that burn treated and I'll see all of you at dinner." With that, she smiled at us and headed to her office. Professor Vester smiled at us and headed off too. 

"Amazing..." Zara grinned. 

"Wow, Lily, that was incredible, your battle with the dragon!" Amelia put in. 

"Wait until everyone hears about it..." Nadine put in. I smiled softly as we walked to the hospital wing for the medic to take a look at my burn. 

It turned out to be a second-degree one and Madame Pomfrey wrapped put a magic liquid on it and chanted a spell to kill the pain, then wrapped it in a gauze, which was supposed to speed healing. 

"Come back in two days, so I can make sure it's healed," she told me with a smile. "I heard about your courage out there...congratulations, dearie." 

She kissed my head and we headed out toward dinner. Wait until I wrote to Mum and Dad about this latest adventure. I never thought I'd battle a dragon and win.   


More later! 


	9. Slytherin Discovery

**Lily's Beginning: Year One at Hogwarts**

_By_: CNJ 

_PG-13_

**9: The Slytherin Discovery**

**Lily:**

"Astral projection..." Zara muttered as we leafed through a pile of books at the library later on the following week. We were trying to find out more about this ability I had, but so far hadn't had much luck. Zara dropped a wide book with a thunk. "You'd think since it's a supernatural ability, there'd be tons of stuff on astral projection, but so far I've only seen a few sketchy paragraphs." 

"Me too," I agreed. 

"Even those just scan over the physical basics," Amelia put in. "Mostly they just describe what happens, but doesn't go into the details of _why_ or _how_ it happens." 

It was beginning to grow dark and we'd have to start our homework soon in addition to getting ready for dinner, so we started to gather the books together and put them on the return table. 

So many of them were old and blew up dust. As I plopped the last book down, a stream of dust came back up in my face, making me cough. The cover flipped open and I saw the contents page. 

"Hey, maybe we could write to the publisher and ask for more information on this!" I whispered, excited by my sudden inspiration. My friends leaned close and I hastily wrote down the address. Godric's Hollow was one of the addresses we wrote down as we copied more publishers' addresses down. That was in one of the more recent books. 

"Most of these are right here in the magical world, so we could send an owl," Amelia put in as we put our notebooks away and headed to our dorms. 

The corridor going toward the moving stairs was crowded with students heading back to the dorms also, so we headed around the long way and back up toward the narrow tall towers near the back of the castle. We heard voices near the top. Adult voices. 

"...been well known that the Slytherin family wants this castle back under their ownership," a man was saying. "Salazar's descendant plans to put a claim in for this property." 

"Salazar agreed to split this property between the four founders and it's in the will," Professor Pierce told him. "Once Salazar sold the three-quarters to the others, it was stipulated that it would become a school for all magical students." 

We heard other voices and footsteps coming down. We ducked behind a knight's armor, so we could hear them without being seen. Professors Vester and Pierce came down with several others, seemingly visitors...from the Ministry? We wondered at the strangers as we heard them talk about a deed and how a distant descendant of Salazar was making a claim on this castle. 

"...but Salazar Slytherin meant for this to be opened to other purebloods and relatives of his, not mixed bloods and muggle-borns..." one of the visitors was saying. 

"Most of the Slytherin family members were always bigoted," Professor Vester put in. 

"And the vote was fairly taken..." another official added. "Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, and Rowena Ravenclaw voted to allow a diversity of magical students in. I might add that's when Slytherin walked out in disgust and refused to have anything more to do with this school." 

"Strange that Salazar wanted control of the building, yet didn't want to do any more of the work of running this place than contributing the castle," another official said primly. "Rowena was the master designer of the inside of the castle, including the enchanted ceiling; Godric recruited the students and teachers and came up with the idea of the Sorting Hat while Helga planned what classes would be taught and on many of the school's activities." 

The voices trailed off, but bloody hell, had we learned quite a bit about the founders right there! Once they were gone, we booked upstairs and sat by the fireplace. 

"Figured Slytherin was up to something," Zara's hazel eyes were bright. "And to think his great...nephew or grandkid or something is greedy and wants this school back in the Slytherins' clutches!" 

"Oh, Merlin, I really hope the Slytherins don't take over the school," I said in worry. "I hope this descendant isn't as narrow-minded as Salazar." We thought about our classmates, most of whom are mixed blood, including Amelia..."half and half" as some people would say, then about the muggle-borns...like myself and about twenty percent of Hogwarts' population. 

"Well, Lily, it looks like this gift of yours could come in handy," Amelia told me. I nodded. 

"If I could just find out where this...Slytherin relative is and figure out what they're up to," I said slowly. "Then we could come up with a plan to stop them." We hoped.   


Sorry this chapter is kind of short, but I've been busy; there'll be more longer chapters later! 

  



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